Gujarat Confidential: Troubled Lending

Last week, Rajya Sabha MP and BJP leader Ram Mokariya posted on social media that he had lent money to a fellow BJP leader around a decade ago but the latter is yet to pay him back. When asked by a journalist, Mokariya repeated his claim but stopped short of naming the BJP leader. Instead, he said that it was “a matter of BJP family”.

Benched

Former AAP councillor Ghanshyam Makwana from Ward 4 at Varachha in Surat, who recently joined BJP, finds himself in a controversy after someone posted videos purportedly showing three benches – bought from his councillor’s grant – kept on the terrace of his house in Varachha. In defence, Makwana said that the benches were already present in the residential society where he stays. “As there was a wedding, I put them on the terrace of the building. After the wedding concludes, the benches will be put back at their original location.”